MODELING OF ELECTRON TEMPERATURE DETERMINATION USING A STATIONARY CYLINDRICAL LANGMUIR PROBE UNDER IONOSPHERIC CONDITIONS

Анотація

The goal of this article is to theoretically substantiate the applicability of classical formulas in the theory of a single cylindrical probe to determining the electron temperature using the current-voltage characteristic of a floating probe system of probe – plasma – ultrasmall spacecraft structure in ionospheric conditions. Probe measurements are considered using a cylindrical probe and a cylindrical reference electrode (spacecraft structure) in a supersonic transverse free-molecular flow. The ionospheric plasma is considered to be Maxwellian and consist of electrons and singly charged atomic ions of oxygen and hydrogen. The modeling is based on a mathematical model developed earlier, which determines electrical and gas-dynamic interaction in the floating system of probe – plasma – satellite structure as a function of the plasma and probe system parameters and the bias potential of the probe relative to the spacecraft structure.

Electron temperature determination was simulated using the classical procedure of the theory of a single cylindrical probe based on measuring the probe currents in the low voltage part of the ion region and the transition region of the current-voltage characteristic of a floating probe system. For the model used, the methodological error in determining the electron temperature was quantitatively estimated taking into account the uncertainty in ionospheric plasma parameters, such as the ion composition, degree of nonisothermality, and flow velocity. It was shown that, for a satellite-to-probe area ratio greater than 300, the methodological error does not exceed 2%. Numerical and analytical estimates of the error in determining the electron temperature using the calculation formulas of the single-probe theory were obtained as a function of the probe current and potential measurement accuracy. It was shown that, within the adopted current collection model, the methodological error of using the calculation formulas for a single probe is significantly less than the error of the calculation formulas at a current and potential measurement accuracy of 1%.

The obtained results may be used in preparing and conducting ionospheric plasma diagnostics using ultrasmall spacecraft.

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